Tax evasion: declared 10,000 euros, but spent 250,000 euros

The Tax Inspectorate is looking for tax evaders – 20 thousand taxpayers will be called to give explanations.

It is reported that large discrepancies between income and expenses were discovered by the tax office after a large crossing of 3.8 million tax identification numbers worth less than €10,000. According to Kathimerini, at the beginning of the new year the tax office will call more than 20 thousand taxpayers to substantiate the inaccuracies. In the end combating tax evasion is a government priority.

Specific taxpayers will have to provide explanations. The Ministry of Finance and the tax administration are perplexed: how can one live, for example, on 250,000 a year and declare an income of 10,000 euros. According to information, at this stage the tax inspectorate requested additional data from banking institutions, since in a number of cases the recorded discrepancies inspire fear. For example, taxpayers even with zero income have been identified who, according to banks, demonstrate high spending on cards and at the same time have large money transfers to accounts they have abroad.

Once additional audits are completed, some taxpayers will be issued a notice. Thus, citizens will be required to provide evidence of the absence of tax violations. Those who fail to do this will be subject to five years of inspections, and taxes and fines will be imposed, provided for in cases of concealment of taxable actions (services, work, etc.).

As reported by AADE Commander G. Pitsilis, a total of 80 million data were compared in a total of 3.8 million tax returns for 2022, with an annual family income of up to 10,000 euros. A total of 440,000 taxpayers with inconsistencies were identified, of which 420,000 had minor discrepancies and can be checked in the second stage.

The cross-sectional data used information on bank account movements, card payments, electricity bills, mobile/internet bills, and a range of other miscellaneous payment information. The result will be compared with declared income.

It is noted that in the near future AADE will begin concluding agreements with financial institutions abroad, such as Revolut and Paypal. And this is because the authorities believe it is possible that a potential portion of the hidden taxable material is in the above “wallets”.

Another element that indicates a major concealment of taxable income is consumption expenditure. According to the data, the total declared income of individuals in the AADE is 84 billion euros, and household final consumption expenditure, according to ELSTAT, higher by about 40 billion euros. Moreover, this amount should also include income from tourism.

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